Steel Should Explain Decision

April 18, 1997|The Morning Call

Bethlehem Steel Corp. is a private company. Management doesn't have to explain its decisions to the public, although it has that obligation to its stockholders. However, in many indirect ways the citizens of Bethlehem and the Lehigh Valley share a stake in Bethlehem Steel's direction. So when the company turned down an offer to purchase and reopen the Bethlehem Structural Products division, it is understandable that a lot of people wanted to know why.

Nobel Venture Group, led by former Bethlehem plant manager Jack Roberts, had offered $85 million for the division. Reopening the beam mill -- which shut down in March -- would have brought back 430 of the mill's 600 workers. The deal included a cost-cutting agreement with the United Steelworkers union.

But Steel issued a brief statement Tuesday saying simply, "We have not found a qualified buyer on satisfactory terms. We will be proceeding with the orderly sale of the assets of structural operations."

The company may have sound reasons for rejecting Nobel Venture Group's offer. However, at a time when it is working with various government officials to convert parts of its shutdown plant into new economic opportunities, it might be constructive to know what problems it perceived. Nor is too much to ask from a good corporate citizen. Compared to the thousands of jobs that have been lost at Bethlehem Steel, saving just 430 of them may not seem like much --except to the 430 workers, their families, friends and neighbors. What stands in the way of keeping those people employed?